Prior art storage media packages, such as jewel boxes for audio CDs and CD-ROMs, have suffered a number of disadvantages. (I will refer to CDs in this specification, but the discussion of the prior art and the invention also applies to other disc-shaped records and storage media in general.) These problems create a substantial need for a jewel box having a base and lid that can be mated/assembled around a disc with the types of standard equipment used industry-wide, while weighing less and being sturdier, less complex, less bulky, and less expensive. 
The standard jewel box is relatively complex given its basic role as a protective storage case. It is comprised not only of a lid pivotally connected to a base as would be expected, but it also includes a tray with a disc carrier. The tray is typically held in the base by a press or snap-in fit and includes a raised cylindrical portion that spaces the recorded surface of the stored disc from the tray itself. A set of raised, radially arranged fingers formed on the raised cylindrical portion hold the disc in place by an interference fit with the center hole of the disc.
The standard jewel box is also relatively fragile. The types of hard plastics generally utilized in the construction of jewel boxes are easily cracked and broken. This leads to a protective case that can easily lose its serviceability. It also leads to special problems related to the hinges used to join the lid to the base of the jewel box. The lid typically has extensions with protrusions that fit into holes on the base to provide a pivot connection. However, these extensions snap off easily, and the protrusions often pop out of the holes into which they are inserted. The integrity of the standard jewel box is, therefore, easily compromised.
Finally, the complexity and materials used in constructing jewel boxes increase manufacturing costs. The resulting jewel boxes are relatively heavy and bulky (approximately ¼ inch thick), making them more cumbersome and  inconvenient when storing large numbers of discs. This also greatly limits their usefulness and economy as a case and protector for mass shipments of discs. Thus, when making mass disc mailings, such as those currently undertaken in the marketing of internet services, standard jewel boxes are not used. Instead, discs are generally wrapped in plastic and placed in cardboard mailing envelopes that do not offer the degree of protection desired.
In view of the foregoing facts, a great need exists for a jewel box that will overcome the deficiencies in prior art jewel box construction. However, ubiquitous use of the current jewel box has led to standardization of the equipment used to place a disc in the base of a jewel box and join a lid to the base so that it covers the disc. Manufacturers have made a large investment in this automated equipment for assembly and packaging of standard jewel boxes. Any new jewel box design that would require different automated equipment is unlikely to succeed in the marketplace. Thus, an improved jewel box must also be capable of use with the automated assembly equipment currently utilized by manufacturers.